Japan’s Quake Blamed for Malaysia’s First-Half Sales Decline

Proton Holdings regains market leadership over rival Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua (Perodua) as Malaysian first-half vehicle sales fall 1.3% to 297,203 units.

Honda sales reportedly down 33% in Malaysia so far this year.

The Malaysian Automotive Assn. says delivery and production delays caused by a shortage of parts after Japan’s March 11 earthquake were the main reasons for the drop.

The MAA has lowered its 2011 sales forecast to 608,000 units from 618,000 as a result. That’s still better than 2010’s record 605,156 vehicle deliveries.

Implementation of the amended Hire-Purchase Act, which resulted in longer lead time for completion of the car-sales process, also caused a slowdown in new vehicle sales, MAA President Aishah Ahmad says in a statement.

Commercial-vehicle sales rose 0.8% in the first half to 31,549 units, while the passenger-car segment fell 2.3% to 265,654 units.

Media reports put Honda sales down 33% and Toyota off 16%. Proton sold 85,168 units for a 32% market share. Perodua had a 30% penetration.

The MAA says most of the first-half decline occurred during the second quarter, when sales dropped 12.4%.

Deliveries in June dived 22.6%, with new cars down 24.7% to 36,838 units and CVs off 2.5% to 4,952.

Sales are expected to show improvement for July, with the MAA saying the supply situation has improved and a full recovery is expected over the next one to two months.

The association’s data shows first-half vehicle production fell 6.9% to 273,399 units, with cars down 6.5% to 252,200 units and CVs off 11.3% at 21,199.

Indonesia overtook Malaysia in the first half as Southeast Asia's largest market for passenger vehicles, Aishah is quoted as saying.

Elsewhere, The Star reports Proton is to spend RM90 million-RM100 million ($30.3 million-$33.6 million) a year on research and development to ensure it remains competitive. Managing Director Zainal Tahir says this is vital for the auto maker to compete globally.

Proton also will continue to collaborate and partner with third parties to add value to its products.

“We could not afford to do it single-handedly, as Proton is still considered small compared with other global automotive giants,’’ Zainal tells reporters.